UK & India Sign Migration and Mobility Partnership

On 4 May 2021, the governments of the United Kingdom (‘UK’) and India signed a new ‘migration and mobility partnership’ deal which would allow young professionals between the ages of 18-30 to work and live in each others countries for a period of up to two years under the ‘Young Professionals Scheme’.

The Young Professionals Scheme visa route will work in a similar way to the current T5 Youth Mobility Scheme visa, with India being the first visa national country (i.e. those countries which require visas to visit the UK) to benefit from the new visa category.

The UK’s Home Secretary, Priti Patel, quoted “The UK Government is committed to deliver an immigration system that offers clear opportunities to the brightest and best talent from India and around the world to come to the UK to study, work and live. This ground-breaking new partnership with India is an important milestone in delivering on that commitment.”

What are the key requirements of the new Young Professionals Scheme?

The key requirements under the Young Professionals Scheme are:

• Applicants must be between the ages of 18-30
• Applicants will be required to demonstrate that they have sufficient financial resources to meet their needs during the authorised period of stay
• Applicants must hold a valid degree or diploma, or have relevant professional experience.

Will there be a cap of the number of applicants permitted to apply under the Young Professionals Scheme?

The UK government has confirmed that it will allow up to 3,000 young professionals to come to the UK each year through this visa route.

Will the Young Professional Scheme visa route require a sponsor to work in the UK?

Although, it hasn’t been formally announced whether applicants would be required to be offered a job from a UK Visas & Immigration (‘UKVI’) approved licenced sponsor, it appears that applicants under the scheme will not be required to be sponsored in order to work in the UK.

As a result, this will hopefully be beneficial to both applicants and sponsors.

Will the Young Professionals Scheme allow visa holders to extend their visas after completing two years in the UK?

According to the memorandum published by the government, the Young Professionals Scheme will only allow applicants to remain in the UK for up to two years.

However, the visa route may allow visa holders to switch into the skilled worker visa category if they are offered a skilled job with an approved UKVI Sponsor Licence holder prior to the expiration of the visa.

Please note that the information provided in this article is from a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ provided by the government and further detailed information will be provided as soon as the route is implemented within the immigration rules.

How we can help?

Our immigration experts at Cartwright King Solicitors have substantial experience and knowledge in advising talented professionals and prospective employers.

If you require further advice in relation to the new Young Professionals Scheme, please contact our business immigration expert, Mohammed Hafejee, or complete your details below and one of our lawyers from our Immigration team will contact you.